4-year-old Staten Island boy hospitalized after being hit by tossed brick

NEW BRIGHTON (WABC) -- A 4-year-old boy was hospitalized after he was hit in the head by a flying brick thrown during a Staten Island neighborhood dispute over a loose dog Monday night.

Police say the boy was struck when 30-year-old Marcillio Perez tossed a brick across Stanley Avenue and Jersey Street in New Brighton just before 6 p.m.

Perez was apparently aiming for his neighbors, who confronted him about his loose dog, when he threw the brick at the crowd.

The boy was struck in the forehead and sustained substantial lacerations.

He was treated at Richmond University Medical Center for non-life threatening injuries.

Authorities say the neighbors responded by running over, assaulting Perez and holding him until police arrived. He was taken to the hospital to be treated for injuries sustained while the crowd held him.

He was then charged with felony assault.